All geared up for another challenge!

Being a girl who is not accustomed to outdoor activities, 

needless to say... adventures, to register myself for Mount KK Expedition 2013

appear to be a shocking news to everyone - including myself.

Many were curious in knowing why.

I guess there was a point when my self-esteem was being ripped off,

and at the end of a miserable experience, I was left worthless.

Feeling like a loser in dealing with my own life,

I decided to take charge again and felt the need to regain back my self-worth.

I wanted to take small steps to reassure and convince myself that 

I may fail in certain things in life, but NOT EVERYTHING. 

Been taking small steps to achieve small little goals.

Then bigger goals. Then set a resolution to it.

Every little achievement I've made, made me proud of myself.

The Mount KK Expedition wasn't for me initially.

Only 80 out of 198 registrants got picked randomly.

But as I was eager to join, I attended every single training they have.

During the first few weeks of training, the "not so eager ones" dropped out.

So I got in!

Series of training have been planned out by 

external trainer to ensure that we work our butts off!

Bukit Saga / Apek Hill at Cheras,

 Gunung Angsi at Negeri Sembilan, 

and Gunung Nuang at Hulu Langat.

First training at Bukit Saga - I thought I was gonna die with my heart pumping
so hard that I could feel that it's gonna pop out!!!

The waterfall at Bukit Saga - marks that the peak is near!

Gunung Angsi wasn't that bad actually.
We were going slow and steady. 

Gunung Nuang made Bukit Saga seemed like a peanut.
My leg was jelly-like when I reached Kem Pacat.
It is a long way with alot of obstacles to make sure we are all PANCIT!
I didn't made it second time around though..

Our second visit to Bukit Saga was a breeze!
It's getting easier after every training and I'm glad we've improved.

These training are really tough!!!
And it definitely reminded me how unfit I am!

To ensure that our level of fitness, we are also told to undergo a series of
physical fitness test by Sunway Medical Centre too.
Passed that... almost failed the lung test though.

I've really tried my best in all my training, and there has been
some bad times when I had muscle cramps and have to refrain from continuing the hike.
It kind of demotivating, but I just kept moving.

Now that the actual hike is just around the corner,
I'm unsure if that's what I opted for...
Am I up to climbing at Mount KK?!!
Am I capable of going all the way up to 4,095 metres (13,455 ft) above sea level?!!
This is a no-joke, there are people who died from AMS during the hike!!!

*paranoid*

There are no room for doubt now.
I've come this far.
I did what I should.
External, internal and my own training.
I did it all.

I seriously, really, sincerely, truly, madly, deeply, hope that I'll made it to the peak.

May God be with me all the way.

Flying off at 7.30am tomorrow morning.

Wish me luck peeps!!! 

Read More

Den Den Japanese @ Oasis Ara Damansara

In the mood for Jap after my review for Zen @ Sunway Pyramid! 

I was recently introduced to this nice place called Oasis Square.

What seemed to look like Setia Walk Puchong, is actually a place far more 

interesting and happening hidden at Ara Damansara!

It's such a beautiful place that I regretted for not bringing my DSLR during my visit.

Photos taken online - does not belongs to me. 

Photos taken online - does not belongs to me. 

Sunny boy used his iPhone and all the photos taken of me - has red eye on it!
My excuse - I've just glamorize glow in the dark lenses!!!

Infront of a Chinese Restaurant called Royal Flush

Another eye-catching building -Roulette (a bar)

I love how the lights shine when the water is shooting up!
Kind of reminds me of Mines Wonderland Musical Fountain when I was a kid

I was then brought to a Den Den, a Japanese restaurant - implying kind of a fine dining concept.

And it amazed me to hear a strange but familiar language from people
who are seated on my left, right, and opposite!
They are speaking Japanese!
Yes, this place is where Japanese go to when they yearn for some home food.
I was sooooo proud then to be dining here.

Appetizer was a trio smoked platter of smoked duck, s
moked salmon and marinated smoked lean chicken.
It was an okay dish - I love the duck,
but other two.... it does not impress me that much.

Salad with marinated raw salmon with avocado.  

It was a good salad to start with, but perhaps they could tone down a little on the dressing.

It's too flavorful to my liking. But I do love the avocado though! Yumsss... 

What's next on the serving is a hot pot of somewhat taste like a seafood curry.

This dish.. me love!!!

There are crabs, prawns, and mussels all perfectly cooked in this Japanese curry,

which is not too thick, but just nice to be dipped with the baguette.

On a side dish, we ordered Cheese Omelette in a thick gravy. 

This dish makes me think twice about the Japanese patron here.

Is it me, or is it Japanese egg dish is supposed to be weird?

I could hardly taste the cheese, and the taste of the gravy seemed out of place.

Despite having to carry my stomach to move around (that's how full I was),

Sunny boy insisted on having dessert.

And so he ordered waffle with blueberry topped with vanila ice-cream.

I warned him that nothing could beat Gelare waffle but he proceeded with the order.

With just a mouthful, I proved him wrong... :)

The waffle isn't that bad, it's just that, Gelare will always, always, be the best! 

To be honest, I would want to visit Oasis Square again for the environment.

But not for Den Den. 

With this said, can anyone tell me why are there so many Japanese eating there?!!

Perhaps we are all too used to the customized taste of Japanese food 

that we didn't realize that the real authentic Japanese food could be different!

For those who are interested to check out this place.. details as below..

Address : Bistro DenDen @ Oasis Ara Damansara,

Central Piazza, Oasis Square, Ara Damansara, Petaling Jaya.

Read More

Zen Japanese Restaurant @ Sunway Pyramid

It's gonna be a night of forced diet today.

Mum has left for the night to great aunt place in Serdang.

Leaving me behind, alone, lonely, food-less at home.

Hunger makes me think about food, particularly Japanese - my favourite!

And recently someone asked me where to get good Jap near Klang.

To be frank, Klang offers nothing but bak kut teh.

So the first thing that came into my mind is Zen @ Sunway Pyramid!

It's just 15 minutes drive away from home - IF I'M THE ONE DRIVING!

(Vvroooommmmm!!!)

Reminiscing my visit there although it has been a month or two back... 

Do enjoy the simple and almost-forgotten reviews... :)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

I love the choice of salad in Zen. 

We ordered the salad with snow crab which is simply delicious!

Love how the aromatic miso dressing jive with the crunchy leafy salad with juicy crab meat...

For appetizer, we were introduced to Zen's cheese baked scallop with Japanese mushrooms.
I remember that this dish is quite pricey - around RM14 per piece.
But it was all worth it looking at the succulent scallops drowned in the
generous portion of my favourite mushrooms.
I could have both myself - but mum always say... "sharing is caring"... :)

And how could one skip the sashimi section in the menu??!!!

For a new sashimi lover like me, we made a good pick 

for variety of sashimi - from salmon, tuna, to octopus.

Zen do serve one of the freshest sashimi I've tasted.

One of my must-have dish in a Japanese restaurant - unagi!
I love how thick flavorful unagi melts in my mouth..
We ordered an Unagi Roll and oh-myyy... the unagi is superb!

Mini Sukiyaki pot with seafood - it makes me wanna sing!

This hot pot with simple yet delicious ingredient like prawns, 

scallops, tofu, mushroom, vegetables are then cooked with miso soup. 

Served hot, this dish completes our dinner with a warm warm tummy... :)

Feeling satisfied with the sukiyaki... singing... 

"It's all because of you... I'm feeling sad and blue.. 

You went away.. Now my life is just a rainy day..."

 I guess this blog post didn't really help me tonight.

Dinner is three beautiful pears given by the office for the Health Week. 

Am looking forward to visit Zen again.

Heard they've got buffet too! Hoorray! 

yummylicious!

Address: 3 Jalan PJS 11/15, Bandar Sunway, Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia

Phone:+60 3-7492 4922

Read More

Dog buffet @ Eternabii Grand Opening

Lexie's 1st Birthday is coming and it calls for a celebration!!!

For this unusual birthday celebration, I have decided to settle with an edible cake 

for dogs - Lexie, Leah, Queen Queen, Vin Vin and others.

There is no better option than getting the cake from Eternabii Pet House, 

the newly opened pet shop at Setia Alam.

They wow-ed me during their grand opening few months back.

Can't believe I've not blogged about it!

This is the very first pet shop Grand Opening that offers 

soooooo muchhhhhhh foooood for our furry friends! 

You should see how excited the dogs were, 

with their tails wagging, sniffing everywhere, and drooling all over!

Say no more, look at the photos!

Cheese cake, yogurt cake, carrot cake and sponge cake all for the doggies!

Mini burgers, snacks, cupcakes, cotton cheese cake, yes, for the dogs!!!

The canine friends were all excited to mingle around.

Some are even overtly-friendly that they went doggy-humping each other.... 

*whhaaaaa!!!*

Personal portrait of dogs that could sit still for at least a moment to get a quick snapshot.

Lexie is on the top left - all furry - not groomed! 

Looking at the joy Eternabii gave to our furry friends,

I hope a good birthday cake can help to cheer up Lexie's birthday celebration.

At the meantime, anyone who is interested in Eternabii, they do offer

services such as grooming, boarding, and day care.

Find out more at their Facebook page here : https://www.facebook.com/Eternabiipethouse

Not like I have commission for this recommendation in my blog,

it's just that, I feel safe whenever I send Lexie over to them.

Why?
Because Eternabii do not cage up the dogs during boarding.
The dogs will be put in an open space in the shop to roam around,
to play with others, to pee and poo freely without getting spanked (oopsss),
and well, provided only if your dog is not violent, spayed (preferably),
no kutu (of coz!) and not into doggy-humping so much.
Hahahaha!

With so much freedom given to them, I believe
they will make Lexie feels like home when I'm out from town for a few days.

An advice to find a good pet shop for your loved one....

Always find a happy pet shop with a true pet lover, 

then you can be assure that your canine will truly be in good hands! 

Cheers!

Read More

I am a D.I.V.E.R !!!!

Wootzzz!

I still couldn't get enough being labelled as a DIVER.

I could never imagine this last year - I couldn't even swim that time!

For the past 29 years - I've lived a mundane life.

A simple, low-risk, safe, routine-based life.

And then, a heartbreak made me opt for something bizarre - DIVING!

The quote below is my drive for the mission!

With CC's recommendation of a OWC instructor whom he said is friendly,

I gathered people to go with me. 

Chriz my secondary schoolmate and Loke my badminton kaki.

I've selected Tioman for the OWC due to travel conveniences.

It was definitely a new kind of experience for me.

One that shed new light about LIFE!

And also one that tells me how untalented I am when underwater.

We are lucky to have Eric Liow as our instructor.

Friendly, patient, funny is his outstanding personality, 

but his trademark - his tanned skin!!!

Hokkien people would say "Or kim or kim, ju kua ju jip sim!"

Tioman was cloudy and rainy when we got there



But it was nice at the resort... 





Meet our "or kim" instructor Eric - giving us equipment briefing





Sempat lagi for a PEACE sign! ;)





All geared up and we couldn't stand straight due to the weight! 





Ready to go in... kan cheong!





On a boat dive





Doing my first backroll entry on a boat dive - no, he's not pushing me down!
Hands on regulator and mask to ensure its placement when you get into the water.



The sea looked kinda choppy from this photo - taken by CC

Yay! I'm alive! SWT

Compilation of embarrassing photos on our lousy control of buoyancy..
It was mostly me that would have to be pulled down by Eric..
Still laughing my socks off looking at these photos!

One of the most suffering part of my OWC - seasickness!
I had it at every dive... :'(



After much struggle, drinking gallons of salt water, and seasickness, I've made it through!



Great view at night... all the hardwork pays off looking at this breathtaking scene!



CC, Joyce, Eric. Chriz & Loke..



The post mortem of my Open Water Course at Tioman :-

1) Breathing - It was pretty hard at first to breathe without using our nostrils. Air in, air out, with mouth.

2) Mask defog - to scrub using saliva. It still disgust me till today.

3) Tank - It is super heavy for a petite person like me. To carry such weight on my back for every dive is a "good exercise" but it's definitely going to make me shorter.

4) Buoyancy - breathing and balancing skills - not my expertise. I've been floating up to the surface numerous times that I was demotivated to continue my course.

5) Safety stop - This is something I'll never ever learn! To stay put underwater for 3 minutes - no finning. I was doing Macarena - legs going left right center, body up down center - I was in a mess!

6) Seasickness - Despite walloping the motion sickness pills like nobody business, I was surprised that it does not have any effect on me. Vomited after every dive - some in the sea, yes. The fishes may thank me for the buffet later on. And I continued to have slight dizziness 3 days after my last dive. That's a pretty bad week.

Some advice to overcome :-

1) To get use - Breathing using regulator on mouth is a piece of cake when you get a hang of it. Clearing of mask with saliva no longer makes you go "ewww!!!" coz you would want a fog-free mask when you get into the water. Carry tank?! It's a good exercise to help you lose weight! More tank for me please! 

2) Practice - Practice makes perfect. Compare your first dive and your last dive. You'd be amazed how much you've improved and how comfortable you are in the water now. And buoyancy control no longer depends heavily on inflating / deflating your BCD like using it as a lift button, but through your breathing. Breathe in air to float a little more, and breathe out to sink a little more. Voila! 

3) Goal - Always remember why you are here for. With a reason, you'll put in double and triple effort to get the things done. Specifically certain skills that your instructor needs you to do. Make every single skill your small goals. And getting certified is the end goal!

4) Motivation - Go with friends who are positive and constantly giving motivation. It helps to know that if they can do it, you can do it too! 

5) Doubt - Never doubt your own capability, and your instructor! Just do what he told, and you'll be fine.

6) Instructor - You would need to find a instructor that you can trust. Eric is a person whom I could put my life on when I'm in the water. There is one skill whereby we have to remove our mask and swim. I could barely open up my eyes in the water due to the salt contained, and so I decided to just close my eyes, and put my hand on Eric's, and I swim with his guidance with my eyes closed entirely. This can only be done with trust. And this is also why I've declared Eric as the World Best Instructor! Wootz!

7) Seasickness - Dizzy? Just vomit it out. That's my remedy. Then I'll sniff on some cooling ointment to ease the dizziness a little. Then lay down to rest for awhile. One may lose appetite as well but it's okay as long as your stomach is not empty - just eat something light. During my next dive at Redang, I took 1 1/2 Novomin pill 1 hour before my dive, and it lasted throughout the day. I was perfectly fine and enjoyed my whole 3 days diving sessions! The seasickness would get so sick of infecting the same lousy person and will go away eventually. Don't think there's gonna be a permanent seasickness. So don't worry. :)

Hope the above helps. It's just my two-cents sharing.

What a busy month. Promise to blog more.

Goodnight ya'all! :)

Read More